(More) Things that Make me Laugh

Claire is in full-blown terrible twos lately. Not napping, pushing us, and throwing some mighty tantrums, such as the one last week that led to an ER visit, but underneath it all, she's still my sweet girl.

She has this way of asking you about something, "What is X, mama?" And when you tell her, she will say "Oh! It's..." It's that little exclamation "OH!" in there that gets me each and every time.

She's learning how to use the word "either." Mispronounced "EE-VER."
"I DON'T WANT TO WALK OR RIDE ON THE STROLLER, EE-VER!"

Any period of sleep, no matter how short or long, is invariably described as "a good sleep" as in "Did Ben have a good sleep?" "No, Clairey, he only slept on my lap until you came over to talk to me."

Food is "the best ever" regardless of what it is. "You make the best pretzels, ever!" "You make the best milk, ever!"

And most mornings, she heads into our room, where Ben still sleeps, and talks to him in his bed. "Good morning BendyBen! How was your sleep? Did you have a good sleep? Are you a smiley guy?" (The things she says, that we've said to her, astonishes me, and really makes me keep my own language in check nearly all the time.)

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As for the young man, he's also marvelous. He's a solid little bowling ball, 18 pounds and change at his 6 month checkup. 28 inches tall. Starting to babble. Full of smiles - especially for Claire.

Yesterday, I was toting his robust little self around in the ergo carrier, and he was bouncing around, making sounds. He discovered that he could make a pretty entertaining one, pressing his mouth against the skin of my upper chest. "MUH-MUH-MUH!!" Sort of that sound you make when you hum, and press your hand over your mouth.

Still no teeth, but eats like a champ. You should have seen his face the first time he ate a Cheerio. Did not know what this delicious thing was! Thus far, he has tried and liked the following: oatmeal, barley, rice, pears, apples, sweet potato, squash, banana, baby mum-mums and cheerios. This week he will also get to start on green veggies - I have high hopes for peas, green beans and avocado. Our pediatrician has very specific directions on the order and timing for introducing foods to an infant. It's sort of maddening, really, however, I do see the benefits. Claire was a bit of a trouble - she had a reaction to milk (I had to cut dairy while I was nursing); carrots gave her pimples and she turned red after eating berries.

We moved the mattress in his co-sleeper down to the bottom last night, since he could peer over the top while it was in the upper position. And we're going through some cry-it-out sleep training. It's been almost two weeks, and we've made great progress. We're down to 1 wakeup, and the time on that one is decreasing.

Yes, I know straight-up Ferberizing is not a popular sleep solution. But I chose that path with Claire and she's a fantastic sleeper. (Giving up her nap, I think, but that's a whole other thing)

For now, it's OK. We're sleeping on the couches in the living room for a bit. It's not bad at all. They are brand new. And the seat on each, slightly smaller than a twin bed. While I miss sleeping next to Dave, technically, I have more room than in our Queen bed. And before long, he will sleep in the crib in the other bedroom with Claire, and this will be but a memory.